When Chen Yu arrived at the hotel coffee shop, Blatter was already there.
He was alone, sitting at a window seat with his legs crossed, leisurely reading a copy of the *World*.
He must have brought an assistant, though, who was sitting not far away and keeping an eye on them.
"Chen!"
Blatter clearly wasn’t focused on the newspaper. The moment he saw Chen Yu walk into the coffee shop, he stood up and greeted him with a beaming smile.
Chen Yu walked over, sat down, and ordered a black coffee.
He hadn’t slept much the previous night, only managing a couple of rushed hours of rest in the early morning. He was exhausted.
"What’s the matter? Didn’t you sleep well?"
Blatter looked Chen Yu over and said, "Chen, you must get some rest. You’re the best doctor in the world. One could say your health is the world’s greatest treasure. Look, the *World* even wrote that your existence is like a light that illuminated Foe, who was sinking into hell."
"Oh?"
Chen Yu took the newspaper and glanced over it.
As expected, the front-page headline of the *World* was about Vivian Foe’s near-fatal cardiac arrest.
Quite some time had passed since the incident, and the media had already dug up a lot of information.
The *World* had almost completely reconstructed the course of events and had consulted multiple cardiovascular experts. They unanimously agreed that if Chen Yu hadn’t made a swift diagnosis, discovered Vivian Foe’s cardiac tamponade in the ambulance, and treated it on the spot, then even if Vivian Foe had made it to the hospital in time, he most likely would have died.
That’s why the report concluded by saying that when Foe was shrouded in the shadow of Death and about to fall into hell, Chen Yu appeared like a holy light and snatched him back from the Grim Reaper’s hands.
Chen Yu put down the paper without comment, downed a mouthful of bitter black coffee, and felt significantly more alert.
"Chen, what did you want to talk to me about? To be honest, I’ve always felt that we should sit down and have a proper chat. I think we could have a lot to discuss," Blatter said with a smile.
The night before, Chen Yu had researched numerous reports and documents, thought long and hard, and come prepared.
But now, sitting in front of Blatter, Chen Yu was at a loss for words.
’What is there to say?’
’Or more to the point, what good would it do?’
FIFA is a peculiar organization. It’s a non-governmental body, not subject to the regulation of any country’s government.
Perhaps at its inception, its members genuinely held the intention of developing the sport of football for the better, but the appearance of the Brazilian Avelange changed FIFA.
’Look at what FIFA used to be.’
’A hundred-odd people crammed into a dilapidated office building in Switzerland. When it was time for their annual meetings, they didn’t even have their own venue and had to rent a hotel.’
’And because prices in Switzerland were so high, they couldn’t even afford to rent an expensive one.’
’Avelange was nearly sixty years old, yet he still had to handle many things personally.’
’Most importantly, they had no money.’
’Before Avelange took office, FIFA’s revenue model was like selling beer, sodas, and mineral water on a train—the income was pitifully low.’
’Avelange, already a millionaire before taking office, had the sharp insight that with so many football fans, not selling advertisements would be a crying shame.’
’After that, FIFA galloped down the road of commercialization, never once hitting the brakes.’
’Now, when FIFA officials travel for business and stay in luxury suites costing thousands of US dollars a night, they’ve probably long forgotten the days when they were so broke they couldn’t even afford to rent a meeting venue.’
’Furthermore, with no oversight body and opaque finances, you had a bunch of people sitting on a mountain of gold. It would have been embarrassing *not* to be corrupt.’
’Why host so many meaningless cups and exhibition matches? It’s all for the money, isn’t it?’
’Take these exhibition matches, for instance. Fans get to see the stars they want, corporations get publicity through sponsorships, and local governments stimulate consumption by hosting the events, boosting their performance metrics. It’s a win-win-win situation, with all three parties happy.’
’FIFA is happy too. Want to host a match? You have to pay tribute. A whole delegation of our officials has to come inspect your city, and don’t they expect to be wined, dined, and have their palms greased?’
’On the surface, it even expands football’s influence, so everyone can claim a success.’
’Everyone wins, everyone’s happy. Everyone except the players. When the league season is over and they should be resting, they’re forced to play in a meaningless match, increasing their fatigue and raising their risk of injury.’
’Of course, the superstars get hefty appearance fees, but how many of them are there? Most of the players get nothing at all.’
Chen Yu wasn’t really concerned about those superstars, though.
’They’re stars with massive incomes. Their clubs treat them like they’re made of glass, terrified of any mishap.’
’They have their own medical teams and nutritionists to create health plans and monitor their bodies. When a problem arises, they can immediately find the best doctors for treatment.’
’Sometimes, they’re even happy to play those extra matches. It expands their influence and earns them appearance fees.’
’They can earn millions just by jogging around on the pitch or sitting on the bench for a bit. What’s not to like?’
’For a commercial appearance, they’d have to put on a fake smile for hours in front of the cameras.’
’Sitting on the bench, they don’t even have to force a smile.’
’But there are only a handful of stars. A football team has eleven players. It’s the forwards who score the goals, and it’s them who enjoy the glory and the fans’ cheers. But is a victory solely their achievement?’
’What about the defenders diligently guarding the goal, and all the other role players?’
’A red flower needs green leaves to set it off. Chen Yu was concerned about the rights and interests of these "green leaves."’
’They were the ordinary ones, the silent majority.’
’It’s like an employee who’s worked his ass off all week. The weekend finally arrives, and he’s planning to just stay home and rest. But then the boss suddenly announces a mandatory "team-building" event—a celebration for the company’s top salesperson that everyone is forced to attend.’
’You sacrifice your own free time, force a smile through the whole thing, and watch the sales champ happily walk away with a huge bonus. Then you get a nice meal out of it.’
’And on top of that, the boss is probably thinking, ’You lot couldn’t normally afford a meal like this. You should be grateful to me.’’
’In the end, to show how enthusiastic you are, you drink too much, end up in the hospital getting your stomach pumped, and accidentally die. How raw of a deal is that?’
’And that’s the scenario for an ordinary employee at a large company, where the benefits might actually be decent.’
’What’s more common are the small companies where the boss is a cheapskate who works his employees like pack animals.’
’They earn a meager income, struggle to support their families, and don’t receive the benefits and protections they deserve. No one cares about their health.’
’So their problems were the ones Chen Yu cared about.’
But again, the same question arose.
’What good would it do?’
They were both adults. How could Chen Yu be naive enough to hope that one grand, self-righteous speech from him could cause an old fox like Blatter to have a crisis of conscience, transform into a saint, and suddenly devote himself wholeheartedly to the players’ welfare?
That kind of thing only happened in fairy tales.
With such enormous interests at stake, even if Blatter genuinely wanted to make a change, he wouldn’t be able to.
’So what could he possibly do?’
’This meeting was destined to be fruitless. It was completely meaningless.’
"Good coffee."
Chen Yu drained his cup, stood up, and left.
Blatter blinked, a little dumbfounded.
’We haven’t even started talking, and it’s over?’
’Then why did you ask me to come all this way? To play me for a fool?’
A flash of anger glinted in Blatter’s eyes.
It was because Chen Yu had testified during last year’s World Cup, implicating Zheng Mengjun, that Blatter had ended up losing face.
At the time, he had a million reasons to resent Chen Yu.
But being a savvy adult, Blatter quickly adjusted his mindset, realizing that it was precisely at a time like this that he should be extending an olive branch to Chen Yu.
Chen Yu was the world’s best doctor. Bringing him into FIFA would not only be a dazzling personal achievement but would also help to cleanse the stains on his own reputation.
That was why Blatter had extended the invitation to Chen Yu.
But now, being rejected by Chen Yu again—and in such a dismissive way—Blatter was finding it difficult to suppress his anger.
But just as Blatter’s expression wavered, Chen Yu, who had only taken a few steps, suddenly stopped and sat back down.
"Mr. Blatter." Chen Yu’s expression suddenly brightened into a brilliant smile. "I’ve thought it over again, and I find your proposal very appealing. FIFA is a truly great organization. You may have seen in the media that I’m planning to leave the Suns this year to expand my career."
"I’m preparing to establish a sports consulting firm, so I believe that accepting your invitation to join FIFA would be mutually beneficial."
A momentary fit of despair had made Chen Yu get up and leave.
But as rationality returned, Chen Yu suddenly had a thought. ’No matter how much I despise FIFA, it isn’t going to just vanish overnight.’
’If I really want to do something for those ordinary players, just being angry and shouting from the sidelines is useless.’
’The only option is to join them and try to make a change from within, however small.’
As shrewd as Blatter was, he was still taken aback by Chen Yu’s sudden one-eighty, so much so that he began to wonder if Chen Yu had ulterior motives.
But in the next moment, it all clicked.
Chen Yu had mentioned starting a sports consulting firm.
’That explained everything.’
’Clearly, Chen Yu wasn’t satisfied with the income of a mere team doctor, or even just a physician. He wanted to build his own business, to turn his fame and influence into cold, hard cash.’
’And to do that, it was only natural that he would want to leverage FIFA’s network.’
Blatter’s eyebrows shot up, and his smile broadened. As he looked at Chen Yu again, he found him much more agreeable.
’So, he’s a kindred spirit after all!’
"Chen, I just knew you’d make the right decision!" Blatter beamed, the corners of his eyes crinkling.
The rest of the conversation was suddenly much more harmonious.
Once the general direction was agreed upon, they could chat about anything and everything.
They talked for over an hour straight, after which Chen Yu proactively invited Blatter to lunch.
"Chen, I’ll be waiting for you in Switzerland, then."
A tipsy Blatter embraced Chen Yu in farewell.
He had invited Chen Yu to the Switzerland FIFA Headquarters, promising to hold a grand inauguration ceremony for him.
"Great. I’ve been wanting to visit Switzerland for a long time."
Chen Yu saw Blatter off with a wide smile, watching until his car disappeared into the distance before spitting on the ground.
’What a piece of shit!’
Over lunch, perhaps having had a bit too much to drink, Blatter had smugly boasted to Chen Yu about FIFA’s moneymaking schemes.
It was, in a word, utterly shameless.
As he turned to head back into the hotel, Chen Yu suddenly received a call from Brian.
He asked when Chen Yu was returning to the United States and if he could make it back in time for the draft.
"By the way, Miller’s gone."
Brian added suddenly at the end of the call.
It didn’t register with Chen Yu at first. He froze for a second before realizing Brian was talking about Reggie Miller.
"When did that happen?" Chen Yu asked urgently.
"Just today. He was discharged from the hospital and went back to Indiana."
Brian sounded like he’d just missed out on a million-dollar prize. He asked Chen Yu what had happened. Why had Miller suddenly left, just like that? Didn’t he want to join the Suns?
Chen Yu sighed. "It’s probably for the best. And besides, he never said he was going to join the Suns."
To suddenly leave Phoenix at a time like this, right before the draft... there was only one explanation. After all this time, Miller had finally made up his mind.
In the end, he hadn’t been able to convince himself.
In fact, after spending so much time with him, Chen Yu had gotten the sense that Miller had a peculiar quality deep down—a desire to create challenges for himself where none existed, a willingness to make an enemy of the world, and even a strange enjoyment of it all.
He desperately craved a championship, but he savored the pursuit of that championship even more.
It was like how he was born unable to walk properly, yet insisted on overcoming that difficulty to show the world that not only could he walk, he could play basketball, and he could become one of the best to ever play the game.
So, no matter what decision Miller ultimately made, Chen Yu could only offer him his best wishes.

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